Going with a blend of youth and experience, U.S. national team coach Tony DiCicco yesterday publicly announced his 20-player roster for the 1999 Women's World Cup, and there wasn't a surprise in the bunch.

"I think it's the best team the U.S. has ever put together," DiCicco, who oversaw the team that won the first women's Olympic soccer tournament in '96, said in a teleconference emanating from Chicago. "They want to make a statement to the world: They want to be Olympic champions and World Cup champions at the same time."

Chastain, the Santa Clara alum who is one of 12 women on the squad who have played in at least one previous World Cup, agrees the time is ripe to win the quadrennial tournament.

"We're a much more polished soccer team," she said. "We've grown together over the years; we've learned more about each other and our tendencies. . . . We're better tactically; we're better technically."

But though the Americans have had pretty much their own way since winning the gold medal in Atlanta -- they have a 50-5-3 mark in full international matches over the past 2 1/2 years -- Chastain said the World Cup won't be a cakewalk.

"Other countries are not out there for a kick-around anymore," she said. "They're out there to improve. They're out there representing their countries. They're out there to kick our butts."

While the rest of the world has been beating the U.S. team for incentive, the Americans needed something to keep them from going stale, and it's the "rookies" who have partially supplied the internal kick-start.

"The young players have brought exuberance, energy, enthusiasm and excitement to this team," Chastain said.

Added DiCicco: "It's a credit to the veterans that they were able to raise the level of their game (because of the competition from the less experienced players)."

But though there were some questions about who would fill the last couple of roster spots -- Fotopoulos and Sara Whalen got the nod over Aly Wagner, Michelle French and Susan Bush -- DiCicco pretty much had determined well in advance what players would be in New York for the Cup opener against Denmark on June 19.

"This was a three-year process that started the day after the Olympics, and we looked at hundreds of players," DiCicco said. "But over the last couple of weeks, in my mind I knew who would be on the roster."

However, this is not to say he didn't have an open mind about who would represent the United States in the World Cup.

"Nothing was given on this team," he said. "Everybody earned their way on the team. . . . And not everyone who deserved to get on the team made it."

Now it's time for fine-tuning.

"I like this team but we still have some improvements to make," DiCicco said. "There's nothing in our game that is problematic. We're working to improve our set pieces (free kicks and corner kicks); we're working to better the coordination between the goalkeeper and the defense; we're working to make ourselves better.

And we're pretty much on track." FOOTNOTES: Six players -- Hamm, Akers, Fawcett, Foudy, Carla Overbeck and Kristine Lilly -- have played in the two previous World Cups; Chastain, who played in '91 but not in '95, Roberts, Briana Scurry, Tisha Venturini, Tiffeny Milbrett and Saskia Webber will be playing in their second World Cup. . . . Six players with Northern California ties are on the squad: Chastain; Roberts, who grew up in San Ramon; Foudy, who attended Stanford; Fawcett, who went to Cal; Venturini, who grew up in Modesto, and Los Altos native Lorrie Fair. . . . Eight players attended perennial NCAA champion North Carolina: Fair, Overbeck, Roberts, Hamm, Parlow, Lilly, Venturini and Tracy Ducar.